friend

American  

[frend] / frɛnd /

noun

1. a person attached to another by feelings of affection or personal regard.

   Synonyms:

   confidant, crony, chum, comrade

   Antonyms:

   foe, enemy

2. a person who gives assistance; patron; supporter

   friends of the Boston Symphony.

   Synonyms:

   advocate, backer

3. a person who is on good terms with another; a person who is not hostile.

   Who goes there? Friend or foe?

4. a member of the same nation, party, etc.

   Synonyms:

   compatriot, confrere, associate, ally

   Antonyms:

   foe, enemy

5. Friend, a member of the Society of Friends; a Quaker.

   The religious practices of Friends are founded in direct communion with God.

6. a person associated with another as a contact on a social media website.

   We've never met, but we're Facebook friends.

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verb (used with object)

1. Rare. to befriend.

2. to add (a person) to one's list of contacts on a social media website.

   I just friended a couple of guys in my class.

idioms

1. make friends with, to enter into friendly relations with; become a friend to.

friend ¹ British  

/ frɛnd /

noun

1. a person known well to another and regarded with liking, affection, and loyalty; an intimate

2. an acquaintance or associate

3. an ally in a fight or cause; supporter

4. a fellow member of a party, society, etc

5. a patron or supporter

   a friend of the opera

6. to be friendly (with)

7. to become friendly (with)

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verb

1. (tr) an archaic word for befriend

Friend ² British  

/ frɛnd /

noun

1. a member of the Religious Society of Friends; Quaker

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Friend ³ British  

/ frɛnd /

noun

1. mountaineering a device consisting of a shaft with double-headed spring-loaded cams that can be wedged in a crack to provide an anchor point

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friend More Idioms  

More idioms and phrases containing friend

• fair-weather friend
• make friends

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Usage

Spelling tips for friend The word friend is hard to spell for two reasons. First, it sounds like [ frend ], making it easy to miss the i. Second, even if you know there is an i, it can be difficult to remember the order of the i and the e.How to spell friend: To remember that friend has an i in it, think of the phrase "I see my friends on Friday." Both friend and Friday begin fri-. If you remember that friend has an i in it, but just can't remember where it goes, keep in mind the classic mnemonic device "I before E, except after C."

Related Words

See acquaintance.

Other Word Forms

• friendless adjective
• friendlessness noun
• friendship noun
• nonfriend noun

Etymology

Origin of friend

First recorded before 900; Middle English friend, frend, Old English frēond “friend, lover, relative” (cognate with Old Saxon friund, Old High German friunt ( German Freund ), Gothic frijōnds ), originally the present participle of frēogan, cognate with Gothic frijōn “to love”

Example Sentences

The friend then told Hirschi that Bridges wanted to get in touch.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 3, 2026

That caused a lot of friction with Berlin's supposed closest EU friend, France.

From BBC • Apr. 3, 2026

Chesterton, a friend and political opponent of Shaw.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 3, 2026

As the friend he has always been, he listened.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 3, 2026

To be a true friend, you have to be a good listener, and I discovered that day that Marlene was the truest of friends.

From "An Elephant in the Garden" by Michael Morpurgo

Related Words

• acquaintance
• ally
• associate
• buddy
• classmate
• colleague
• companion
• cousin
• partner
• roommate